Padres Select Graham Pauley

Infield prospect Graham Pauley made the Padres’ Opening Day roster, reports Dennis Lin of the Athletic (X link). San Diego will need to formally select his contract. They have multiple vacancies on the 40-man roster to do so.

Pauley will join Jackson Merrill in making his major league debut, perhaps as soon as tomorrow morning. Like Merrill, he’ll make the jump directly from Double-A. Pauley is in his second full season as a professional. The Padres selected him in the 13th round of the 2022 draft. That looks like an excellent find, as the Duke product quickly hit his way to the majors.

A left-handed batter, Pauley raked across three minor league levels a year ago. He started with a .309/.422/.465 slash with as many walks as strikeouts over 62 games in Low-A. While he didn’t maintain that pristine strikeout and walk profile upon a bump to High-A, his power numbers exploded after his move to the Midwest League. He popped 16 home runs in just 45 games to earn another promotion to Double-A. Pauley continued to impress, closing the season with a .321/.375/.556 slash in 20 contests.

Overall, Pauley finished his first full minor league schedule with an excellent .308/.393/.539 line in 551 plate appearances. He ripped 32 doubles, five triples and 23 homers. As a college draftee, he should acquit himself well against low minors pitching, but his production was so strong that it put him firmly on the prospect radar. Baseball America and The Athletic’s Keith Law each ranked him 11th among San Diego prospects this winter, praising his advanced offensive ability. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs slotted Pauley sixth in the system in January — he’d be up to fourth after the inclusion of Drew Thorpe and Jairo Iriarte in the Dylan Cease trade — and similarly praised his overall offensive aptitude.

The 23-year-old picked up where he’d left off this spring, hitting .314/.400/.486 with five walks and nine strikeouts in 40 trips to the dish. He convinced the front office of his readiness to take on major league pitching. Prospect evaluators are less enamored of Pauley’s defense, with reviews on his glove ranging from average to well below. Pauley is primarily a third baseman but has limited experience at second base and in the corner outfield.

He should get run early in the season at the hot corner. Manny Machado is expected to work as a designated hitter early in the year as he continues to build back after undergoing elbow surgery last October. Pauley should step in as the primary third baseman, with Eguy Rosario and Tyler Wade on hand as potentially superior defensive options late in games.